Ignoring her, I grab Georgia and pull her towards me, cupping her face with my hands. I make her look up at me, her skin like silk on my fingertips.
“Come back to the suite with me. Stay with me and let me show you that you’re not some…” I take a deep breath, pissed that she ever thought she wasn’t the most precious thing I’ve ever touched. “…Some notch on my bedpost. Let me prove it to you.”
“I’m scared,” she finally admits, and I know it took a lot for her to utter those words. Georgia always seems so sure of herself, and I can’t help but love that she’s opening up to me and giving me another piece of her. I’m going to keep grabbing each piece she gives until I have them all.
“I’d never hurt you,” I try to reassure her. “I’m not a young man, Georgia. Hell, I’m more than twenty years older than you. I know what I want. I’ve done well with the things I’ve invested in. I see things others often don’t. It’s why I’ve been as successful as I’ve been. Some call it Vegas luck, but I don’t. I knew the moment I saw you, you were meant to be mine, and I also knew I’d have to fight to have you. I’m more than willing to do that if you make me. As you can see.” I nod to the side, indicating to the room in which we’ve found ourselves.
“You have nothing to fear from me. In fact, you should fear for anyone who would ever harm you. Their fate won’t be good when I get my hands on them. Or when I find out who’s hurt you.”
Her eyes water, and a tear slips out. I bend down and kiss it, stopping it in its tracks. As I do, I hear a small catch of her breath.
“I can give you a list if you like.” Peaches gives me a teasing smirk.
“Shit. I will not be an accessory after that fact,” Sam says, and I hear the door close behind her.
“You coming with me?” I ask, holding my breath. I’d let her walk out of here if she asked. She wouldn’t get far, because I’d always have a man on her. And wherever her ass landed, I wouldn’t be far behind. She’d find me every time she turned around until I finally wore her down. Until she got that I wasn’t going anywhere. That I wasn’t playing a game just to get under her skirt. Oh, I wanted under there, but I wanted everything else that came with it.
“Well, of course I’m coming with you. I haven’t even made my list of people that have wronged me,” she says matter-of-factly before placing a quick kiss on my lips and turning to leave.
I can’t help but shake my head. Jesus, she’s going to keep me on my toes.
12
Peaches
I’m showing more confidence than I feel as we walk through the Golden Peacock lobby. Antonio has my hand firmly gripped in his, and I’m as close to him as possible without him carrying me.
My heartbeat is picking up, and I’m nervous as we enter the elevator. Seventy-five million dollars. I can’t believe he paid that for me.
“I would have paid a hundred times that.”
I look up at Antonio in shock, because it’s as if he just read my mind.
As he pushes me up against the elevator wall, I’m reminded of the last time we were in here—the pleasure that followed and then the need to leave. Everything about last time flashes through my mind right before his lips land on mine. When he’s just a breath away, he whispers against my mouth.
“A king would throw away his throne for a woman like you. If I were a king, I’d watch my country burn to ash just to have one more taste of your lips.”
All my fears and second thoughts disintegrate as his strong hands come up to hold my jaw, and his mouth melts into mine. I taste his warm tongue against mine and feel the power of his body pressing me to the wall. The hard ridge of his cock rubs against my core, like he’s looking for some kind of release.
I reach down and grip his cock through his slacks. When I make contact, he moans into my mouth, then grinds his hips against my palm.
His lips move down my jaw to my throat, where he licks me there. “Easy, Sweet Cream. I’m saving that for when I get inside you.” He gently takes my wrist and brings it up to the wall, pinning it behind me. He moves down, licking between my breasts, and I can’t help but close my eyes, loving the feel of his lips on my body.
“Antonio,” I beg, needing more of what only he can give me. I should probably be thinking about how we hardly know one another, or what our future will bring, but all I can do is feel.
I’ve thought and planned and second-guessed my entire life. Nothing has ever made me feel this good, and I don’t want it to go away. I’ve spent years deciphering everything around me, and I’m tired of it. If being with Antonio feels like this, then I never want to leave his side. I may have gotten scared and run, but he found me. And isn’t that what every girl wants? To be claimed?
I feel my feet lift off the floor, and suddenly I’m being carried. I barely open my eyes enough to see that we’re in the penthouse again and headed towards the bedroom.